Southbound entrance to I-15 from Bluff Street to temporarily close

I-15 Virgin River Bridges - new traffic pattern will shift motorists into the center lanes, St. George, Utah, June 2017 | Photo courtesy of the Utah Department of Transportation, St. George News

ST. GEORGE – A southbound entrance onto Interstate 15 will be closed and traffic over the Virgin River will be diverted on the center lanes of a new bridge starting July 11 as part of ongoing work to add auxiliary lanes between the Brigham Road/Exit 4 and Dixie Drive/Exit 5 interchanges.

The map details the detour route for motorists to take in order to access southbound I-15 due to the Bluff Street/Exit 6 interchange ramp onto I-15 being temporarily closed. | Click to enlarge | Map courtesy of the Utah Department of Transportation, St. George News

The traffic will be diverted in to the middle lane of the new bridge structure so workers can dismantle and rebuild parts of the old bridge and outside lanes, according to a Friday press release from the Utah Department of Transportation.

In order to help drivers safely navigate this new traffic pattern, UDOT, working with St. George City and the contractor, will close the I-15 southbound entrance ramp at Bluff Street.

Once the southbound entrance onto I-15 from the Bluff Street interchange is closed motorists will be detoured to 270 East which will take them to the Dixie Drive interchange where they can access southbound I-15.

Drivers should anticipate lane restrictions on I-15 the evenings of July 9-11 while construction crews set up the new traffic pattern.

Currently, three southbound movements of traffic converge over the Virgin River:

Mainline I-15 traffic.

Vehicles using the Bluff Street entrance ramp.

Motorists using the Dixie Drive entrance ramp.

Closing the southbound entrance at Bluff Street will eliminate one of these merges to provide a safer transition for all southbound traffic.

Hours of operation

Daytime hours 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.

All I-15 lanes will remain open during the daytime – two lanes in each direction

Nighttime hours 9 p.m. to 6 a.m.

Two lanes open on I-15 in each direction with occasional single lane closures as needed

Other construction activities currently underway

Preparing roadway for traffic shift on July 11

Preparing detour route

Installation of storm drain

Preparations of center lanes on new bridge structures include pavement leveling, barrier finishes, and striping

Trail opened for 4th of July holiday weekend

A map of alternative routes the public can take due to the closure of the segment of the Virgin River Trail that passes under a set of freeway bridges where roadwork is currently taking place. | Click to enlarge | Map courtesy of the Utah Department of Transportation, St. George News

A closed segment of the Virgin River Trail that passes through the construction zone will reopen Friday at noon for the holiday weekend. It will remain open until 6 a.m. Wednesday and then be closed until roadwork over the Virgin River is completed.

Click on the map featured in this article to view alternative trail routes.

The trail is anticipated to reopen in September.

Purpose of the road work

The plan is to add an auxiliary lane in both directions that will allow drivers to enter the freeway and exit at the next interchange without merging with through-traffic or changing lanes – basically just driving straight on through. The new lanes are anticipated to improve traffic flow and enhance safety.

Adding the new lanes will involve demolishing and replacing the narrow bridges over the Virgin River – a process expected to be done by December, if not earlier.

In addition to providing a third lane of travel, the new bridges will also be able to accommodate the creation of a fourth lane in the future.

Ed. Note: This post was updated July 1, 2017, with additional information of the Utah Department of Transportation.

Related Stories

Free News Delivery by Email

Would you like to have the day's news stories delivered right to your inbox every evening? Enter your email below to start!

About the Author

Mori Kessler serves as a Senior Reporter for St. George News, having previously contributed as a writer and Interim Editor in 2011-12, and an assistant editor from 2012 to mid-2014. He began writing news as a freelancer in 2009 for Today in Dixie, and joined the writing staff of St. George News in mid-2010. He is also a shameless nerd and has a bad sense of direction, often telling people go left while he is pointing right. Numbers greater than five also confuse him.

I can’t imagine that there is one SG resident who is not looking forward to a wider I-15 in this congested area, and the greater capacity southbound off ramp at Wal Mart.
For those of us who also use the trail system, we see an opportunity to improve walker/bicycle safety by creating a paved trail under I-15. on the south side of the Virgin River. This short section would connect the existing trail system to the frontage road, in front of Wal Mart. The rough grading is already in place, thanks to construction activity.
In the grand scheme this is a minor action item, but would relieve a lot of pedestrian traffic from the roundabouts, which have to be one of the least safe locations for pedestrians and cars/trucks to interact.

No problemo getting to WalMart…I’l just go through Bloomington and cross the river on Man O War…Ooops, that’s closed, too, at least as of a week ago. Time to start shopping at Harmon’s. It could be worse, though. I just returned from a road trip through Colorado and it seemed as though the entire state was under construction. You gotta do what you gotta do this time of year when the weather permits, I suppose.